Delve into the fascinating world of On Kawara: Conceptual Art and Time, a Japanese artist whose profound engagement with chronological time redefined artistic expression. Kawara, a key figure in the conceptual art movement of the 1960s, meticulously documented his existence through a unique body of work, inviting us to meditate on the human experience in relation to the relentless flow of time. This article provides a comprehensive analysis of his life, major series, and enduring legacy for students exploring modern art.
On Kawara's Vision: Deconstructing Time in Conceptual Art
Born in Kariya, Japan, in 1932 (though officially recorded as 1933), On Kawara (河原温) moved to Tokyo after high school in 1951. His early travels, including three years in Mexico and movements between New York and Paris, were formative. He settled in SoHo, New York City, in 1965, remaining an intermittent resident until his death in 2014, aged 81 (or 29,771 days, as his obituaries noted).
Kawara belonged to an international generation of conceptual artists who emerged in the mid-1960s. This movement stripped art of personal emotion, reducing it to pure information or idea and emphasizing the art object less. Along with contemporaries like Lawrence Weiner and Joseph Kosuth, Kawara gave language a special prominence in his work.
The Iconic "Today" Series: Date Paintings Explained
Kawara's most renowned series, "Today" (also known as "Date Paintings"), began on January 4, 1966, and continued until his death in 2014. These works consist solely of the date on which the painting was executed, rendered in simple white lettering against a solid background. Key characteristics include:
- Language and Convention: Dates are documented in the language and grammatical conventions of the country where the painting was made (e.g., "22 JUNI 2007" from Germany). Esperanto was used when the local language did not use the Roman alphabet.
- Materials and Sizes: Executed in Liquitex on canvas, the paintings conform to one of eight standard sizes, always horizontal. Exceptions include three larger paintings made during the Apollo 11 Moon landing in July 1969.
- Execution: Dates are hand-painted with precision, centered on the canvas. Background colors vary, with early works featuring bold hues and later ones tending to be darker. Kawara applied four coats of paint for the ground, allowing each to dry and be rubbed down. If a painting wasn't completed on its starting day, it was immediately destroyed.
- Documentation: Each completed Date Painting is placed in a custom cardboard box lined with a clipping from a local newspaper (often The New York Times) from the city where it was made. These boxes, though rarely exhibited, are considered part of the work.
- Journals and Calendars: Kawara registered each painting in a journal, applying a swatch of the paint mixture and noting its sequence and size. He also marked completed days with colored dots on his One Hundred Years Calendar (yellow for days lived, green for a painting, red for multiple paintings). He created nearly 3,000 Date Paintings in over 112 cities.
This meticulous process makes the "Today" series a profound examination of time, place, and the artist's own existence, often drawing students to On Kawara's Today series explained for its conceptual depth.
Other Significant Projects and Artistic Series
Beyond the date paintings, Kawara developed several other series that explored similar themes of time, communication, and self-documentation.
Communication-Based Art: I Went, I Met, I Got Up, I Am Still Alive
Kawara used various forms of communication to document his daily life and interactions:
- "I Went" and "I Met" Series: These involved sending postcards to friends detailing aspects of his life.
- "I Got Up" Series (1968-1979): He sent approximately 1,500 postcards, each rubber-stamped with the time he got up, the date, his location, and the receiver's name and address. This repetitive gesture highlights his peripatetic global wanderings.
- "I Am Still Alive" Telegrams: A series of telegrams sent to friends and neighbors bearing the simple, yet profound, message "I AM STILL ALIVE." This series has inspired later artists, such as Alfredo Jaar's Rwanda Project.
The Monumental "One Million Years"
"One Million Years" is one of Kawara's best-known works on the passage and marking of time. It comprises two monumental sets of twenty-four volumes:
- One Million Years [Past]: Dedicated to "all those who have lived and died," listing each year for the one million-year period leading up to its conception (starting from 998,031 BC). Started in 1970, it took two years to complete.
- One Million Years [Future]: Addressed to "the last one," listing the million years that follow (ending at 1,001,997 AD). Begun in 1980, it was written over eighteen years.
These volumes account for two million years. The work is often performed publicly, with male and female volunteers alternately reading the dates aloud. These readings have taken place in significant venues worldwide, including the Dia Center for the Arts, documenta 11, and Trafalgar Square, offering a meditative and immersive experience of vast chronological scale.
"Pure Consciousness" and Other Works
- "Pure Consciousness": Initiated in 1998, this traveling exhibition saw Kawara lend seven Date Paintings (January 1-7, 1997) to kindergartens and schools across the globe. They hung in classrooms, with dates falling within the children's lifespans, bringing his conceptual work into a highly personal, educational context.
- "Paris-New York Drawings" (1962-1964): Made before he settled in New York, these approximately 200 drawings featured motifs like stripes and grids, similar to Minimalist artists, and sometimes depicted room-filling string installations.
- Artist Books: Kawara created several artist's books, including One Million Years (1999), I MET (2004), I WENT (2007), I GOT UP (2008), Trilogy (2008), and I READ (2017).
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Exhibitions, Market, and Legacy of On Kawara
Kawara's work has been extensively exhibited globally. His first exhibitions were in Tokyo in the early 1950s. He participated in major international surveys of conceptual art, including Information at MoMA, New York (1970), and documenta 5, 7, and 11 in Kassel. He also took part in the Venice Biennale in 1976.
Significant solo exhibitions include:
- On Kawara, 1973 – Produktion eines Jahres/One Year’s Production (1974, Kunsthalle Bern).
- Continuity/Discontinuity (1980, Moderna Museet, Stockholm).
- On Kawara: Silence, a comprehensive retrospective at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 2015, which provided the first full representation of his practice from 1964.
His works, particularly the Date Paintings, have achieved significant recognition in the art market. In 2007, a Date Painting sold for $1.8 million at Christie's New York, with May 1, 1987 setting a record at almost $2 million in 2014.
On Kawara's influence on contemporary artists is notable, with many creating tributes or reinterpretations of his process-oriented and time-based works. This demonstrates the enduring impact of his unique approach to On Kawara's conceptual art and time.
Frequently Asked Questions about On Kawara
Students often have specific questions when studying such a profound artist. Here are some common inquiries regarding On Kawara's significance in art history.
What is On Kawara known for?
On Kawara is best known for his conceptual art that meticulously documents the passage of time. His most famous series, "Today" (Date Paintings), features canvases painted with only the date of their creation. He also created series like "One Million Years," "I Got Up" postcards, and "I Am Still Alive" telegrams, all exploring human existence within chronological time.
How did On Kawara's art explore the concept of time?
Kawara explored time through rigorous, repetitive, and systematic documentation. His Date Paintings capture singular moments, emphasizing the continuous flow of days. "One Million Years" confronts the vastness of geological and historical time, while his communication series like "I Got Up" and "I Am Still Alive" mark the artist's personal chronology and presence in the world. His work makes the abstract concept of time concrete and palpable.
What art movement was On Kawara associated with?
On Kawara was a central figure in the Conceptual Art movement that emerged in New York in the 1960s. This movement prioritized ideas and concepts over traditional aesthetic and material concerns, often reducing art to information or language. Kawara's emphasis on process, seriality, and documentation aligns perfectly with conceptual art principles.
Where can I see On Kawara's artwork?
On Kawara's work is held in numerous prestigious museum collections worldwide, including the Centre Pompidou (Paris), The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), The Museum of Modern Art (New York), Tate (United Kingdom), and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. A long-term installation of his Date Paintings is also on view at Dia Beacon, New York. You can often find his works in major conceptual art surveys and dedicated solo exhibitions globally.